I have an 11 month old banty frizzle who has been well until about 2 months ago, when she started to lose feathers. At this point she has no rump or tail feathers (although still has feathering around the vent with no signs of diarrhea) and is missing feathers on her sides, and some on the back of her head.
She has lived in a mixed breed flock of 8 hens she was the only bantam), with a friendly silkie rooster who was very, very active. He has been gone for 2 weeks now, and although all the hens have some feather loss as a result of his attention, none of them look like my frizzle.
Up until a month ago she was one of my best layers, but hatched a clutch a week ago and has not started laying again yet.
She is as active as always, and eats well. No one, including her chicks, is having any feather issues. I have seen no sign of mites or lice.
Could this feather loss be from being 'over-ridden', but in that case would her rump and tail feathers be missing? It could maybe be an out of season molt? Or could she be sick?
The rest of my flock was sold yesterday. She didn't go because I would hate to inadvertently sell a sick bird. But this leaves her alone in the yard.
I am in a rush to figure this out so that I can find a solution for her.
Thanks

I have an 11 month old banty frizzle who has been well until about 2 months ago, when she started to lose feathers. At this point she has no rump or tail feathers (although still has feathering around the vent with no signs of diarrhea) and is missing feathers on her sides, and some on the back of her head.
She has lived in a mixed breed flock of 8 hens she was the only bantam), with a friendly silkie rooster who was very, very active. He has been gone for 2 weeks now, and although all the hens have some feather loss as a result of his attention, none of them look like my frizzle.
Up until a month ago she was one of my best layers, but hatched a clutch a week ago and has not started laying again yet.
She is as active as always, and eats well. No one, including her chicks, is having any feather issues. I have seen no sign of mites or lice.
Could this feather loss be from being 'over-ridden', but in that case would her rump and tail feathers be missing? It could maybe be an out of season molt? Or could she be sick?
The rest of my flock was sold yesterday. She didn't go because I would hate to inadvertently sell a sick bird. But this leaves her alone in the yard.
I am in a rush to figure this out so that I can find a solution for her.
Thanks

She has lived in a mixed breed flock of 8 hens she was the only bantam) silkie rooster who was very, very active
Up until a month ago she was one of my best layers, but hatched a clutch a week ago and has not started laying again yet

Click to expand...

Can you post some photos?

It sounds like it could be a combination of being broody, over mating and possibly being plucked by the others.

Hens will pluck out some of their feathers when broody, the loss at the back of the head and saddle most likely from mating- the tail feathers would be plucking from other hens and possibly some have been rubbed off from nesting/brooding.

Well having raised white frizzle cochins bantams for several decades
Here is my solution to the proble,
First if she was from a frizzle to frizzle mating,
then she could be an extreme frizzle.
Thus she would not get all her feathers back as:
extreme frizzles will lose feathers and not regain their full amount of feathering.
And yes I think the silkie rooster being larger than her could have pulled out a lot of the feathers.
As for broody hens they pull the front feathers out for the nest.
Also she is needing healthy WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE for total feed.
Do his FEED THE WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE I will give below,TO HER TWICE A DAY WITH 3VITAMINS FOR A WEEK.
You should see some help in her appearance then if he is to get back her feathers,
NOW FOLLOW THE RECIPE
for one chicken
Use:for one chicken
3 tbsp. of dry crumbles or pellets which ever you use
6 tbsp. of milk
1 tsp of dry flax seed meal (human kind)
2 tbsp. of plain yoguart
1 tbsp. of BRAGGS UNPASTUERIZED APPLE CIDER VINEGAR.
ADD VIT E 1000 MG, VIT B COMPLEX AND Selenium
HERE IS THE DESCRIPTION OF HOW TO MAKE IT
THIS IS FOR A GROUP OF CHICKENS but I gave you the amount for one chicken.
In this recipe below it tells ow to prepare the 3 vitamins necessary to restablish the gut flora in the chickens body.
She has a active caseof E.-Coli from her long session as a broody hen and great amount of feather loss.

WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE FOR YOUR CHICKENS HEALTH.
Glenda Heywood...
ACV by Bragg's is sold by Amazon and at Walmart. (remember to get Bragg's unpasturized, as it has the "brown mother" in the bottom of the bottle.)

Glenda Heywood
My Daughter JoAnna Mertz feeds this wet mash probiotic several times a week to our 10 hens, 5 buff orpingtons 5 plymouth rocks, and they are eating it up in 30 minutes.

Glenda Heywood To make the WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE HERE IT IS
(A) TAKE 2 CUPS OF DRY CRUMBLES OR PELLETS,
(B) 1 TSP OF DRY FLAX SEED MEAL (THAT IS FOR HUMANS)
(C) PUT 4 CUPS OF MILK ANY KIND SOUR OR FRESH, 1 tbsp of dry flax seed meal,
(D) AND 2 TBSP OF THE BRAGG;S ACV.

(E) ALSO 1 /2CUP OF UNFLAVORED YOUGART.

(D) MIX GOOD. PUT IT IN GLASS CONTAINER, AND KEEP ON THE COUNTER OVER NIGHT.

(E) IF IN THE MORNING YOU CAN ADD ANOTHER CUP OF MILK TO THE MIX TO MAKE IT SOLUBLE, like cookie dough, not soupy,

(F) DO NOT MAKE IT SOUPY AS CHICKENS DO NOT LIKE IT SOUPY.
(G) IF THE MIX IS OKAY IN THE MORNING AND NOT TOO DRY FEED IT IN THE GLASS CONTAINER SO ALL THE CHICKENS CAN GET TO IT.

(H) I USED 2 VERY LARGE GLASS PIE PLATES. AND THEN CLEAN THE PIE PLATES BY BRING THEM BACK TO THE HOUSE.

(I) FEED THIS AMOUNT TO EACH CHICKEN 3 tbsp of mix when wet, so make your recipe to fit all amount of chickens to be fed.
(J) WHEN MIXING FOR 1 CHICKEN DO THISIE: take 3 tbsp of dry feed and add 6 tbsp of milk, 1/4 tsp of dry flax seed meal, 1 tbsp of yougart plain kind, 1 tsp ACV,

(K) NOW IF THE CHICKEN ISSICK ADD THIS TO THE WET MASH PROBIOTIC RECIPE
(L) 1 Vit E capsule buy cutting end of capsule off and squeezing it into the wet mix.
(M) 1-Vit B tablet crushed in table spoon and add a little water to dissolve crushed tablet and then add to wet mash
(N) 1- Selenium tablet crushed in tbsp and add little water to it and then add to wwet mash.
(O) now mx good and feed sick chuicken evey day for 7 days
(P) now feed it 5 times for second week.
(P) then 2 times a week frlife.
(Q) feed all healthy chickens 2 times a week for life WITH VITAMINS ONCE EVERY TWO WEEKS.